Celebrate the Lives of the Dead
by TheHipster
Summary: Witches and wizards gather together at Hogwarts to remember their friends and family who died during Voldemort's reign. Oneshot.


Hermione Granger woke up in early hours of the morning, and took a breath that reached to the very bottoms of her lungs; the cool morning air smelled pungently of rain. Soft gray light poured into Ronald Weasley's room in The Burrow, casting subtle shadows across his sleeping face.  
Yawning, she stretched, and tried to run her fingers through her hair – she met resistance in the form of knots, and small clumps of her own dried up blood. She was still wearing her battle-worn clothes from the day before. Memories of the previous night came rushing back to her, almost painfully. She was surprised that she hadn't slept longer – it had been a long and emotional night.

Then the tears came – tears for Remus, Tonks, Fred, everyone. The horrid images tormented her. Images of her friends and mentors bodies lying on the ground, with wide, blank stares unwillingly pasted on their once-kind faces, gazing at something that they would never again see. Her heart ached when they flashed through her mind, like the curses and hexes that had flown through the air last night. She cried quietly, as not to wake Ron. It seemed that she cried for hours – the tears kept coming in an ever-steady flow of anguish and grief.

It was her unwelcome hiccoughs that awoke Ron.

"Hermione," He groaned, sitting up beside her. "What's wrong?" It pained him to see her at her worst, cheeks rosy and wet with tears and eyes puffy, so grief-stricken.

She wailed loudly, and threw her arms around her friend. "Oh, Ron," she bawled. "I miss everyone so much! And they're all gone forever now, and I never got to tell any of them how much I appreciated them-"

"I know," Ron shushed her, and held her tenderly. "I miss them too. So much," he forced out as he let his own pent-up, hot tears roll down his cheeks. Unlike Hermione, he was quiet, and his body was racked with silent sobs of mourning for his brother. Hermione began to weep even harder, partly in sympathy for Ron's loss of a sibling; partly for the others they had both lost. She hugged him tightly, and they wept together for some time.

"'Mione," Ron whispered weakly, his voice cracking slightly. "You know that Muggle belief you told me about?"

She nodded, not quite trusting her voice to answer for her.

"Do you think Fred'll get into heaven?"

Fresh tears sprouted at the edges of her brown eyes. She nodded again, "Yes, Ron," she smiled unhappily. "Yes, he will."

Ron enveloped her in a bear hug, and they spent the morning together, just holding each other.

All of the families agreed to bury their dead at Hogwarts, where Dumbledore, too, had given his life to save the school and the fate of the free wizarding world. It was an emotional day for all attending – which was a large crowd of more than two-hundred people who came to pay their respects.

That day, the rolling green lawns of Hogwarts own Black Lake were transformed into a sea of mourners in black. The direct family of the dead encircled four coffins, each containing a body of one of Hogwart's heroes. Dumbledore's grave was nearby, facing the sunset-washed castle that he had kept in line for so many years.

All members of the Weasley family were crowded at the far end, where Fred was to be buried. Charlie, Bill, Fleur, Percy one-eared George, Mrs. Weasley, Mr. Weasley, and Ginny all had somber expressions, excluding Mrs. Weasley, who was weeping quietly.

Hermione and Harry stood together in silence, sympathizing for Andromeda Tonks, who now had no family except her grandson, Teddy. She too, was weeping quietly, all the while hushing Harry's godson. Andromeda also stood with Lupin's only relative willing to come to the ceremony; his father. He was tall, thin, and one could instantly tell the family connection with his son, for his son was the spitting image of him. He had his arm around Andromeda's shoulders. It seemed they had made a bond in their mourning of the beautiful couple their children had made.

Hermione noted sadly that Snape had no relatives here that she could see. Instead, little Professor Flitwick and Professor Sinistra took the place behind his coffin. All of the Hogwarts teachers were attending the event out of respect for their comrade.

It was silent when Minerva McGonagall stepped out of the crowd to make the eulogy speech. She did not use a charm to strengthen the volume of her voice – every mourner was stony-faced and quiet.

"Comrades, friends, family," She began, her voice clear and distinct. "We gather here today to pay our respects to these four brave witches and wizards. Nymphadora Tonks, Metamorphagus, Auror, beloved daughter of Andromeda Black and Ted Tonks, wife to Remus John Lupin and mother of Teddy Tonks." She motioned to weeping Andromeda and little Teddy, who was now bawling loudly. "Remus John Lupin, son of Hank Lupin and Miranda Jackson, Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, loving husband, and father." She nodded to Hank, and he nodded back, hanging his head. "Severus Snape, son of Tobias Snape and Eileen Prince, Potions Master, and… a good friend." McGonagall paused to steady her voice. "Fred Weasley, son of Molly Prewett and Arthur Weasley, beloved brother to many, and an-" she stopped to think of an appropriate adjective- "-enjoyable student. I had the great pleasure of working and teaching with these individuals. Now I will ask a member of each family to step up and speak about their family member." She stepped down from the stone podium, and let Andromeda take her place.

Andromeda took a moment to slow her tears and steady herself. "Nymphadora was the best daughter a mother could ask for; she was smart, and an excellent student, eager to learn, even outside of school. She was an Auror for nine years, and did her job well. She was snatched away from us too early. We love her very much," Andromeda was finally overcome with grief, and raised her face to the heavens as she clutched Teddy. "Ted and I love her very much," she whispered and she too stepped away from the podium.

Hank Lupin came to the podium next. He was very solemn as he began. "I'm ashamed to say that I never appreciated my son to his fullest extent. He was smart and was a fantastic student, despite his-" he looked pained. "-condition. I was humiliated to have a werewolf for a son. But now – now I couldn't be more proud of him. I am extremely humbled to know that my son, whom had never captured my attention, helped save so many people, along with the wizarding world. I just wish that I'd gotten the chance to tell him how proud I am of him, and if he's somehow watching right now, I want him to know that I love him."

Many mourners were now sniffing and sobbing quietly in sympathy.

Now George Weasley, sporting a Van Gough-like look, came forward to speak about his late brother.

"It's difficult for me to explain how close Fred and I were; not many people understand the link between twin brothers. Fred was an incredible person to be with; he could make you smile even if you were having the worst day of your life. He had an uplifting and addictive personality. It would have been hard to imagine life without him, but now – it's even harder because that's the reality of it." At this point, Molly Weasley burst into tears, almost drenching people around her in tears. "He was the best friend I ever had - or will have. Merlin may strike me down if I ever forget him." He held his hand over his heart. "I love him, and miss him in an incredibly enormous amount. I'll keep Weasley's Wizard Wheezes running in his name. Rest in peace, brother."

The Weasley clan all patted George on the back as he came down, tears streaming down his unhappy face. He embraced his mother tightly, and took his place beside her, lending a comforting touch to her.

Since Snape had no remaining relatives, Minerva stood up to speak about her colleague.

"I think it is safe to say that Severus Snape was well-respected and misunderstood at the same time. His loyalties are no longer to be questioned due to recent events. He played a key role in the destruction of the Dark Lord, Voldemort." Few people stirred at the mentioning of the name. "Severus was a particularly outstanding teacher and mentor to many, and as I said before, a good friend. He is not simply the man he appears to be, but a caring, devoted man. I ask that you shed any misconceptions you may have about him – he deserves our respect and thanks for his actions as of late. He was taken too early, though he would argue with me on that subject." She let a small smile occupy her wrinkled face as she remembered her colleague. "So here lies Severus Snape, Fred Weasley, Remus Lupin, and Nymphadora Tonks."

Each member of the Weasley family, along with Andromeda, McGonagall herself, and Hank Lupin each tossed the first handful of soil onto the coffins. Minerva then gave a wave of her wand, and the piles of earth next to the coffins filled the graves and covered themselves with fresh green grass.

Changing the subject, she said, "I urge you not to live in fear any longer. The Dark Lord is gone, never to kill or destroy lives ever again. Do not mourn these heroes, for they died to eliminate the fear Lord Voldemort instilled in our hearts. Today, we celebrate the lives of the dead who not only left us recently, but all of those who gave their lives to the eradication of Voldemort. For the last four decades, he has ruled over us, tattooing an almost permanent imprint of fear in our hearts. He is gone; may his soul forever be reminded of the spirits he disembodied. Your family members did not die in vain. Remember them fondly and without grief – they died so that you could be free of his reign.

"From this moment on, this day shall be known as _Memor Silenti Etc_; Remember the Dead. May these souls rest in peace," McGonagall finished. It was silent for a few seconds, and then the whole crowd burst into tumultuous applause. No one was clapping or cheering louder than Harry Potter, who, grinning, now had tears of thanks, happiness and grief in his eyes.

A surprise guest, Celestina Warbeck, accompanied by her backing band, burst into the most soulful version of Amazing Grace Hogwarts had ever heard.

"Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a soul like me…"

* * *

Author: I hope you liked it! I worked hard to try and capture the emotion I'd imagined, so I'd love to know what you think. I also don't own any of this. I made up the character, Hank Lupin, since I couldn't find any information on Lupin's parents. Thanks a lot for reading. :3


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